Thoughtnami

Welcome to Thoughtnami, a strange blend of commentary and instantaneous dialogue written by Jeff Harris, webmaster of The X Bridge

Posts tagged One Piece.

A Letter I Got Today (or Take That, Jeff!)

Got a letter from “a very special friend” today. Here we go:

Dear Jeff,

Apparently, One Piece has surpassed Dragon Ball in Japanese volume sales: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2012-10-23/top-10-shonen-jump-manga-by-all-time-volume-sales

One Piece is getting closer to the 300,000,000 Japanese copies mark and when it goes past that mark, it will surpass DB in worldwide volume sales and will save anime.

Take that, Jeff!

Sincerely,
Liam

Take that, Jeff!

Take that, Jeff!

Take that, Jeff!

A little confused with what’s being said, or to put it in the vernacular, what I’m supposed to take.

Is young Liam trying to say that when One Piece reaches 300 million volumes sold in Japan alone, it will not only outsell Dragon Ball but will save Japanese animation?

I …

*ow, my head*

I … I don’t think that’s how it works out. I mean one thing doesn’t affect the other. They’re different mediums, and if one thing is successful, it doesn’t mean that the other thing would be successful. It doesn’t work like that.

Otherwise, Avengers comics would be the highest-grossing publication in the US right now.

As for “saving anime,” I really, really doubt that one comic-based animated series could an entire industry because the book is a best seller. I mean, like I said, it’s cool that One Piece is poised to be a record-breaker, but the series that “saves anime?” No, it doesn’t work like that. One Piece has been on in Japan since 1999 and has been at or near the top of the ratings since day one. But that doesn’t mean the comic sales would make One Piece save the Japanese anime industry.

It just doesn’t work like that.

Tagged: One Piece, manga, comics, anime, cartoons, .

5 ♥ 10.23.12

Anonymous submitted: Are there any shows you want/don't want on Toonami? I think shows like Soul Eater and Tiger & Bunny would be perfect for the block. A show that really shouldn't be on is Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt because its the same reason something like The Venture Bros. isn't on the block: even though there's action, its more of an comedy show with action sewn in.

I’d really like to see something like Soul Eater, Gurren Lagann, and Tiger & Bunny on Toonami one day. I’d like Warner Bros. to take advantage of the older audience demographic and develop some DC Comics or Vertigo-inspired shows for the block as well. I know that Titmouse wants to do something for Toonami (I’d say let them, they do great work).

But what I don’t want on Toonami? Titles that are mostly comedy. Anybody that wants Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt on Toonami but wouldn’t want The Boondocks, Venture Bros, Metalocalypse, or Black Dynamite on Toonami is a hypocrite. Toonami’s all about action, and if more comedy gets in there, it’ll kind of defeat the purpose of an action block in the first place.

(And before people make the inevitable Powerpuff Girls comparisons, that show was rarely on the weekday block, only airing there after the Kids’ WB Toonami experiment ended as a balance of the network having Hamtaro on the block, another show that had no place on Toonami; it was a very short run on Toonami for PPG. Plus, I would laugh in your face hard if you suggest Western animation has no place on Toonami.)

And to be honest, I don’t want any of the older stuff on Toonami either because of one reason: they’ve already aired on Toonami. Let other shows get a chance. I laugh at those people who would want to watch one episode of a show currently on the air (like One Piece) a week for nearly 10 years just to catch up with Japan, and we’d never catch up. That’s a hell of a wait, and time is a luxury we don’t have right now, and over 400 episodes even starting at season six.

Yeah, One Piece had a raw deal in the US, but considering Toonami’s now an adult-skewering block and One Piece is more of a family-friendly, toyetic property, perhaps a late-night block is the wrong place for it. Same deal with Naruto Shippuden. They have no place on the new Toonami.

Tagged: Toonami, Panty & Stocking, Venture Bros, Soul Eater, Tiger & Bunny, Gurren Lagann, The Boondocks, Metalocalypse, Black Dynamite, One Piece, Naruto, .

4 ♥ 06.17.12